We Are Excited To Welcome Three New Teachers In 2022!

Emily Collins, Second/third grade educator at Reflection Riding Arboretum and Nature Center campus

Emily has been an avid animal and nature lover for her entire life. She spent much of her childhood exploring the woods, camping, hiking, and backpacking. Many of her childhood summers were spent exploring the forest and creeks at her grandparents' property in VA. As an adult, she has refocused her passion for nature toward building a food forest on her farm. She dreams for the farm to one day help feed the community, as well as become a sanctuary to miniature pigs without a home.

Emily completed her Bachelor's degree in education at the University of Tennessee at Chattanooga, and later earned her master's degree through Austin Peay. She previously taught public education for six years and is thrilled to make the shift to forest school education. She believes children belong in nature and are natural learners. Emily is excited to be able to facilitate a loving and supportive environment for students that marries the beauty and wonder of the natural world with education that children will need to be successful long after they leave her classroom.

Katie Cooper, Preschool educator at Reflection Riding Arboretum and Nature Center campus

Katie, a native to Chattanooga, grew up roaming the woods of Reflection Riding and Audubon Acres, among other wonderful natural gems of the area. She ventured out of the South to get her degree in International Agricultural Development from UC Davis. Venturing further, she worked on several organic farms, studied abroad in Turkey, lived there for an additional three years off -grid, taught English, and also worked as a Waldorf preschool teacher. Those experiences sparked her interest in combining her passions for plants, early childhood education, and holistic living. In 2015, she returned home and has had her own garden and landscape business for the past five years. She has two kids (ages 6 and 3) with whom she loves exploring the great outdoors. She is so excited to be back in the woods of Reflection Riding with the kids of Wauhatchie!

Rachel Dawson, Preschool Educator at Lookout Lake campus, Music Educator

Rachel grew up in Tennessee and North Carolina, playing banjo in her family's band and spending summers camping out at music festivals. She continued to study music through college, gaining a Bachelor's in Music from the University of North Carolina School of the Arts. After graduation she moved to Chicago, where she worked as a nanny and began developing a musical appreciation curriculum for young children. Once bitten by the teaching bug, Ms. Dawson spent three years at the Arcturus Rudolf Steiner Teachers Education program and received accreditation as a Waldorf teacher. She went on to teach first through third grade at the Madison Waldorf School before heading back south to be closer to family. Ms. Dawson is delighted to bring together her love of music and enthusiasm for the outdoors at the Wauhatchie Forest School.

Seasonal Book Recommendations

Returning Families and Re-enrollment for 2022-23 Now Due 

Current families, please let us know your intentions for next school year by logging into TADS and completing the re-enrollment process. If you have any questions please contact. This is due by January 31. In February, we will begin offering unfilled spots to new applicants.

Preschool Enrollment Options 2022

Did you know that you can increase the days of your preschool child’s enrollment? If your preschool child is currently enrolled 2 or 3 days per week and you would like to increase their days of enrollment for the remainder of the school year, feel free to email Jennipher to find out if there is space available in your child’s program. 

**New** Junior Kindergarten Program for 2022-2023

We are excited to announce our new Jr Kindergarten program. We believe this program will serve as an opportunity for preschool students to more easily transition to full-day kindergarten the following year and to receive a gentle introduction to academic learning in the forest school environment. 

The Junior Kindergarten class will run Mondays-Thursdays 12:00-3:00, with a stand-alone monthly tuition of $420. When combined with M-F preschool, tuition is $840/month. It will be offered at Audubon Acres and Reflection Riding.

Students who are also enrolled in forest preschool Mondays-Fridays will transition directly after preschool ends at noon. The Jr Kindergarten schedule begins with lunch at 12:00, followed by rest/nap/mindfulness until 1:00. There will be an hour of academic centers, then the final hour will be arts and exploration. Jr Kindergarten teachers will plan and train alongside our Kindergarten teachers on Fridays (hence the Monday-Thursday schedule for students) to ensure continuity in learning between programs. 

This program will be open to children who are 4 or 5 years old by August 15, and students who will also be enrolled in our forest preschool Mondays-Fridays will receive priority admission. For current students, it will be offered as an additional option for re-enrollment in January, and applications will also be opened to new families in January, though we will admit current students to the program before filling open spaces with new applicants. If there is not space available at the time of re-enrollment/application, the student will be placed on a waiting list and openings will be filled based on the order in which applications were received. Feel free to email jspector@wauhatchie.org if you have any questions.